Tuesday Newsletter
July 10, 2007
Tuesday Newsletter July 10, 2007
Volume 27: Issue 28
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This issue of Tuesday is sponsored by VisitBritain. For everything you need to know about developing tours to Britain, and to find out about all the British partners who will be joining us at the NTA Convention this year, go to www.visitbritain.com/operators. See you there!. |
| Interested in becoming a Tuesday sponsor? E-mail Karla DiNardo at karla.dinardo@NTA.travel. | |
NTA EVENTS
Conduct Business and See Returns at Annual Convention
Want to Host the 2010 Spring Meet or the 2012 Annual Convention?
INDUSTRY NEWS
Restrictions Alter Motorcoach Loading/Unloading Spots at U.S. Capitol
Pennsylvania Shutdown Ends, State Employees Back at Work
Overseas Visitor Numbers to America Rise in First Quarter
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Benefit Basics – Be Heard in D.C. at the Grassroots Symposium
MEMBER BENEFITS
Tour Operator Profile Updates … NTA Will Do it for You
Tourism Cares Hall of Fame Dinner Includes Auction; Donations Needed
Advertise in the Popular Annual Convention Issue of Courier
ASSOCIATION NEWS
NTA Job Center
NTA EVENTS
Conduct Business and See Returns at Annual Convention
Innovations at the 2007 NTA Annual Convention in Kansas City, Missouri, will bring more ways for members to conduct business, network and see returns. At the 2007 Convention you can experience:
- The Buyer-to-Buyer Exchange – This replaces Friday’s Tour Operator Speed Dating session. The session is open to NTA tour operators and professional travel buyers, including travel agents and bank and educational travel planners. Tour operators can both buy and sell during the seven-minute prescheduled appointments with the professional travel buyers.
- The Destination Pavilion – Based on a proposal from the NTA Convention Committee, your association has reworked the DMO Workstations and is introducing the Destination Pavilion for 2007. The new format will allow tour operators to shop regionally, based on geographic interests, which is a preference tour operators have voiced. Located on the Convention Floor, it will be available to tour operators throughout Convention.
- Seven-Minute DMO Appointments Return – The members spoke, and seven-minute appointments are back for DMOs during the Tour & Travel Exchange. DMOs will have prescheduled business appointments during the Saturday Exchange and tour suppliers will have prescheduled appointments during the Exchange sessions on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Appointments in all Exchanges will be seven minutes.
Registration for the 2007 NTA Annual Convention, to be held Nov. 2-6 in Kansas City, Missouri, is currently open. If you have questions contact your Member Services Team at questions@NTA.travel
Want to Host the 2010 Spring Meet or the 2012 Annual Convention?
Looking for a way to bring your fellow NTA members to your city en masse? Hoping to gain valuable exposure and reap economic benefits for your area? Then put in your bid to host the 2010 Tour Operator Spring Meet or the 2012 NTA Annual Convention.
These events provide host cities/destinations tremendous exposure within the travel industry. The economic impact (both immediate and residual), media coverage, relationship development and ultimate increase in tourism are just a few of the accrued benefits you receive by hosting either of these NTA gatherings.
Copies of the bid specifications and the hotel contract requirements for Convention and Spring Meet are available at http://www.nta.travel/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=21&url_subchannel_id=&url_article_id=3495&change_well_id=2. If you have any questions about hosting these events, contact NTA Vice President of Operations Tonya Littlefield Cummings.
The deadline to submit bids to host these events is Aug. 15.
INDUSTRY NEWS
Restrictions Alter Motorcoach Loading/Unloading Spots at U.S. Capitol
Tour buses coming to Washington D.C.’s Capitol complex are no longer able to drop off visitors as close as they have in the past. Security restrictions around Capitol Hill have forced the rerouting of tour buses away from the Capitol, although the U.S. Capitol Police say the new measures are precautionary and are not based on any known threats.
The restrictions affect where tour buses can load and unload passengers, but do not affect Metro buses or sightseeing trolleys. A detailed list of streets that tour buses can enter and exit the Capitol grounds, along with loading and unloading information, was included in a press release from the U.S. Capitol Police. Additionally, a map of the current bus routes providing specific routing information for motorcoach operators is available.
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., says a fleet of golf carts will be brought in to shuttle tourists from their motorcoaches to the Capitol. "There are golf carts for people with children, and for people who don’t want to climb the hill or who are too elderly or disabled to do so," said Norton.
NTA realizes that tour operators will likely have questions regarding golf cart pickup/drop off and is seeking more specific details. Also, you may contact the Capitol Police Public Information Office at 202.224.1677.
NTA Legislative Counsel Jim Santini was part of a team of industry leaders that met with Capitol Police regarding the regulations, which went into effect June 9. In the June 22 meeting, police officials and industry reps agreed to participate on a multi-jurisdictional task force to examine other options, beside what was recently implemented, to improve access without compromising security.
Pennsylvania Shutdown Ends, State Employees Back at Work
Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell announced that, as of 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, July 10, state workers would be back on the job after a tentative budget agreement was reached Monday. This ended a one-day shutdown of many state government services and brought more than 24,000 employees back to work. Monday’s furlough forced closures of many state offices, along with tourism sites such as state parks, battlefields and state-operated museums.
Additional information is available at http://www.state.pa.us/.
Overseas Visitor Numbers to America Rise in First Quarter
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced that 3.9 million international visitors traveled to the United States in March 2007, an increase of 13 percent over March 2006. Total visitation in the first quarter 2007 was up 9.1 percent from the first quarter 2006.
Mexican residents are flocking to America so far in 2007, as the country’s 1.28 million visitors represent a year-to-date increase of 28.5 percent, and Canadian visitation figures are up 4.8 percent over the first quarter of last year. The numbers of international visitors, which does not include Mexico and Canada, has risen by 8.3 percent over the first quarter of 2006. Additionally, March marked the sixth consecutive month that overseas arrivals were up.
While the rise in international inbound arrivals is encouraging, overseas visitation numbers still have declined since 2001.
To see the complete report, go to http://www.tinet.ita.doc.gov/.
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Benefit Basics – Be Heard in D.C. at the Grassroots Symposium
Get to know your members of Congress and let them get to know you at the 2007 NTA Grassroots Symposium. This event, to be held this year in Washington, D.C., Sept. 24-25, provides a unique forum for members to get more involved with NTA’s government relations efforts. The symposium was the first of its kind in the industry and features education on association issues.
Here are some examples of how the event and its participants continue to have an impact on legislative matters:
- During the first Grassroots Symposium in 2000, it was announced that restrictions had been placed on groups touring the Capital building. Members attending the symposium were able to tell members of Congress about their dislike of the new rules, and shortly thereafter the restrictions were then repealed.
- It was because of citizen lobbying at the symposium that NTA was successful in getting a resolution recognizing the benefits of student travel introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.
- The symposium led to Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., becoming NTA’s champion for an expanded tourism presence in the Department of Homeland Security.
You can initiate action and let Congress know what you think by signing up to attend the 2007 Grassroots Symposium, which will immediately precede TIA’s Travel Leadership Summit. There is no registration fee to attend and all of the programming materials are free. If you have any questions regarding the symposium please contact NTA’s Director of Industry and Government Relations Matt Grayson.
MEMBER BENEFITS
Tour Operator Profile Updates … NTA Will Do it for You
The first part of the initiative to update all tour operator profiles is now complete, as every NTA tour operator has been called. So far, 308 profiles have been updated, and NTA would like to thank those who have helped with this project. The process will continue in the next couple of weeks, so there is still time to help out if you haven’t had a chance to revise your profile.
The project’s "we’ll do it for you" motto allowed members to provide the information to an NTA Member Service Team representative who made changes to their profiles in the database. By having as many of the profiles updated as possible, you can get a more complete understanding of what tour operators have to offer and consider partnering possibilities. Additionally, that can translate into better Tour & Travel Exchange appointments for you at Annual Convention this November.
Tourism Cares Hall of Fame Dinner Includes Auction; Donations Needed
The Hall of Fame Gala Dinner to benefit Tourism Cares will take place Wednesday, Aug. 8, at Mohegan Sun Resort & Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut. This year, the achievements of Dan Sullivan Jr., president and CEO of Collette Vacations, and the late Dan Sullivan Sr., past president and chairman of the board of Collette Vacations, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Tickets and sponsorships are still available, and if you are unable to attend this fabulous event you can be a part of the excitement by donating an item for the evening’s auction. The donation of an auction item is an excellent way for your organization to be represented and show its support. Each year, the Hall of Fame Gala Silent Auction features high-end, extraordinary and unique items that enable Tourism Cares to raise much-needed funds.
No more than 20 items are included in the auction, so your item is sure to stand out and garner recognition among your friends, colleagues and numerous travel enthusiasts. Just give Caitlin Bell or Natalie King at Tourism Cares a call at 781.821.5990 to talk about any unique auction ideas you might have.
Advertise in the Popular Annual Convention Issue of Courier
The October issue of Courier is one of our most popular issues of the year and provides additional exposure for advertisers through bonus circulation and distribution at NTA’s Annual Convention.
This issue includes stories covering all aspects of Convention, from what’s new in 2007 to the Tour & Travel Exchange, education, social events and elections. The Trip Planners showcase the Great Plains (Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wyoming) and Latin America and the October Travel Guides profile Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The space deadline for October issue is July 19 so there is still plenty of time to get in the magazine ranked No. 1 in the industry by tour operators.
Click here to view the full 2007 Editorial Calendar. To reach your account executive call 800.682.8886, ext. 4232, or 859.226.4232 or e-mail advertising@NTA.travel for more information.
ASSOCIATION NEWS
Position Available – Tour Director
Reiman Media Group, World Wide Country Tours
We are looking for a top-notch Tour Director who wants to take their proven track record and put it to work for the exclusive tour operator for Reiman Media Group, World Wide Country Tours.
As the on-tour representative/brand ambassador of World Wide Country Tours, the Tour Director will lead and coordinate all details of the daily operations and the needs of the travelers of tours throughout the United States and Canada. On international trips, the Tour Director will work as the on-tour liaison with the local tour director to support the Tour Director’s job duties, and to handle certain customer service issues. The Tour Director will work under the direction of the applicable Tour Coordinator for assigned tours.
Interested candidates need to have five years minimum travel and tourism/tour director experience. An associate degree in travel and tourism is preferred.
Apply via e-mail to hr@reimanpub.com or by fax at 414.423.3830 or by mail to Reiman Publications, HR Department; 5400 S. 60 Street; Greendale, WI 53129
If you have a listing to post in the NTA Job Center section of Tuesday, e-mail NTA Communications Specialist Pat Henderson. The cost is $250 and your ad will run in two consecutive issues.